Clemens Crossing Cougar Comments
Special Edition - March 27, 2020 - Volume 41, Issue 28
Clemens Crossing Elementary School
Sonia Hurd, Assistant Principal
Website: cces.hcpss.org
Location: 10320 Quarterstaff Road, Columbia, MD, United States
Phone: 410-313-6866
Facebook: facebook.com/ClemensCrossingElementary
Twitter: @hcpss_cces
From School Administration
As we finish up our second week of schools being closed, I want to thank you for your continued patience and support. It has been wonderful to see so many families completing the learning activities as well as the fun CCES spirit week activities. Please continue to stay informed by monitoring the HCPSS website and regularly checking your inbox for updates from Dr. Martirano. Also, consider following @hcpss and @hcpss_cces on Twitter and CCES on our Facebook page. If you do not follow us on social media, you can click the Wakelet links in this newsletter. The Wakelet links allow us to save, organize and share our social media content so you can see it outside of the social media realm. Check that out!
I have been busy taking part in online virtual meetings with school administration and curricular offices from around our school system in preparation for remote learning that will take place. Our staff will be thoroughly trained so all of our students will have opportunities to learn with the guidance and oversight of their teachers. As we move forward, please know that e-learning or remote learning will look different than the face-to-face classroom learning that we are so used to. We are busy planning to make sure the remote learning has elements of familiarity while students are engaged in targeted learning standards for their grade level. In preparation for this shift, please complete the HCPSS Technology Survey below so we can learn how the school system can support families with technology needs. In the meantime, I encourage you to have your child/children engage in the Continuity of Learning activities that have been posted on the HCPSS website. These resources are organized by grade and/or course. Print copies are available at all HCPSS food distribution sites.
I also wanted to check-in with our families and make sure you have what you need to stay safe and healthy while you are at home. If your family is experiencing a need resulting from the COVID-19 school/work closures and need access to food, basic supplies at your home or other necessities, please reach out to me, Mr. Cosentino, at 410-294-8129 or ecosentino@hcpss.org, so I can help connect your family with available resources. We know this is a very difficult time and families may be experiencing unexpected hardships. This is a time when we can come together and ensure that every family is supported and cared for within our CCES community.
While we do not have another virtual spirit week this week coming up, please continue to read with the cougar and send pictures to me to post on social media. It's great to see our students reading. #CCESCougarsRead
Take care,
Mr. Cosentino, Principal
NEW INFORMATION
Student Technology Survey
We want to ensure that every student has access to a device and internet service to access distance learning. Even if your child has access, please click on the link below and reply so that we know who needs access to either a device, the internet, or both. Please respond by March 31st.
The paragraph below was copied from our Superintendent's message:
Student Technology Survey: As we plan for continuity of learning, we request that all HCPSS families complete the HCPSS Student Technology Survey. We are working on securing a limited number of Chromebooks and we will do our best to accommodate all families. We are asking parents who have technology and access available at home to indicate so on the first question. Parents who do not have devices or internet access at home should indicate so on the first question and complete the remaining questions.
Thank you for helping us make sure students have access to technology needed for distance learning!
Paw Print Press Status
Paw Print Press packets for grades 3-5 are due on Friday, April 3. Please drop them off at 6646 Windsor Court (front porch). Instructions for completing the kits were emailed to families this week. Please contact Dani Gardner (president@clemenscrossingpta.org) if you have any questions.
A Reminder: CCES Playground and Blacktop Area is Closed
As Springtime approaches, we know that our students and community members are eager to play on our blacktop and/or playground, however, due to COVID-19 restrictions, these areas are not available to community members. Please inform your elementary, middle, and high school aged children of this mandate. We appreciate your assistance with this.
All HCPSS athletic practices and games are canceled until schools reopen. While the business of the school system continues remotely, all schools and office buildings are closed, including playgrounds, fields, basketball courts and other outdoor spaces.
INFORMATION WORTH REPEATING
Reading with the Cougar Continues!
We know you are reading incredible books! Tell us what you are reading and one thing you like about the book. Maybe others will want to read that book too. Share it with the rest of the Clemens Crossing community by taking a picture of yourself reading with the cougar.
Share it one of two ways
You can email it to Mr. Cosentino at ecosentino@hcpss.org to share on Twitter and Facebook. You can also post on Twitter by including our Twitter handle @hcpss_cces and hashtag #CCESCougarsRead. Then we will re-tweet your Tweet.
Twitter: Handle @hcpss_cces; Hashtag #CCESCougarsRead
Facebook: facebook.com/ClemensCrossingElementary
Digital Resources on hcpss.me
Acess the great resources through https://hcpss.me/:
- Canvas: HCPSS’ learning management system
- MackinVIA: Provides students access to ebooks and databases
- HC Library: Provides students access to online resources and content through the Howard County Library System
- Clever: Provides students with access to approved online apps, browsable by content area
- Find DreamBox by clicking the Clever button link.
- G Suite: Allows students to create documents, spreadsheets, and presentations
- WeVideo: Allows students to engage in video production
- Office 365: Allows students to create documents, spreadsheets, and presentations, as well as email for secondary students
- Typing Agent: Students can continue to work on Typing Agent at home. This provides great practice to improve keyboarding skills.
If you need your child's login, please email Mr. Cosentino at ecosentino@hcpss.org. I will get the login information.
DreamBox Online Math Practice
What is DreamBox? DreamBox offers over 2,000 lessons with millions of paths through the curriculum. To engage students exactly where they are, it adjusts in real-time, adapting hints, level of difficulty, pace, and sequence.
Access DreamBox through hcpss.me under the Clever link.
Grab and Go Meals - UPDATED
The Howard County Public School System will continue to provide free "Grab-N-Go" meals to anyone age 18 and under and/or any HCPSS student, regardless of age, throughout state-mandated school closures, extended through April 24. There will be no meal service Friday, April 10 or Monday, April 13.
Participants will be given a Grab-N-Go snack, lunch and dinner for that day, as well as a Grab-N-Go breakfast for the following day. Participants are encouraged to bring a bag to carry home meals each day.
HCPSS is pleased to announce the following expansions of our meal distribution program:
- Beginning March 30, HCPSS food distribution is expanding from nine to 12 locations, and now will include snacks in addition to three meals per day.
- Beginning April 3, meals to sustain children through the weekend will be provided on Fridays at all locations except Forest Ridge and Monarch Mills apartments, and Bethel Christian Academy.
There is no application, enrollment, or fee for this program.
This meal service extension replaces HCPSS' previously scheduled spring break meal program, as those locations are now closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
HCPSS Free Meal Service
- Ongoing, weekdays through Friday, April 24**
- 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m.
- Locations:
- Howard High School, 8700 Old Annapolis Road, Ellicott City
- Oakland Mills Middle School, 9540 Kilimanjaro Road, Columbia
- Swansfield Elementary School, 5610 Cedar Lane, Columbia (Close to CCES)
- Cradlerock Elementary School/Lake Elkhorn Middle School, 6680 Cradlerock Way, Columbia
- Talbott Springs Elementary School, 9550 Basket Ring Road, Columbia
- Wilde Lake Middle School, 10481 Cross Fox Lane, Columbia (Close to CCES)
- Laurel Woods Elementary School, 9250 North Laurel Road, Laurel
- Ducketts Lane Elementary School, 6501 Ducketts Lane, Elkridge
- Bushy Park Elementary School, 14601 Carrs Mill Road, Glenwood
- Monarch Mills Apartments, 7600 Monarch Mills Way, Columbia
- Forest Ridge Apartments, 5890 Stevens Forest Rd, Columbia
- Bethel Christian Academy, Campus 1, 8455 Savage Guilford Rd., Savage
**There will be no meal service Friday, April 10 or Monday, April 13. Meals for those days will be distributed Thursday, April 9, with instructions for storage and preparation.
A list of additional food distribution locations, not sponsored by HCPSS, is available online.
Counseling Services for Students and Families
The COVID-19 pandemic has made this an especially stressful time for many, especially those already impacted by mental health concerns. In-person assistance may be limited to try to slow the spread of the virus. However, help is still available online, over the phone, and face-to-face when needed. Please also note that Medicaid is covering temporary telehealth sessions during the state of emergency.
If you or your family need mental health supports, please contact your current health care provider. If you don’t have or cannot reach your current provider, you can find providers in the directories linked below.
If you have an immediate need for help with depression, suicidal thoughts, or other serious mental health issues, please contact:
- Grassroots Crisis Intervention team at 410-531-6677
- The Maryland Crisis Hotline: Dial 211 and then choose option 1
- The Crisis Text Line: Text 741741 and a trained counselor will respond
- The National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255
Additional resources:
- Directory of Behavioral Health Services in Howard County
- Directory of Behavioral Health Services for Youth in Howard County
- Howard County Health Department Network of Care for Behavioral Health
- Howard County Bureau of Behavioral Health
- HCPSS Mental Health & Wellness Resources
- Teen Health Matters
- Centers for Disease Control Mental Health and Coping During COVID-19
Free Internet for Eligible Families from Comcast
To help connect more families to the internet at home, Comcast is offering two months of free internet to new Internet Essential customers. More information
From the Art Room - Mr. Schmitt's Recommendations
These are links to museums and articles about museums during the shutdown. For older children (grades 4 and 5), it would be very easy to work through them to find activities and museum tours that would be of interest to them. For younger students, you'd have to cull through them a bit and see what you find most interesting and appropriate.
https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=art+museums+during+coronavirus
A great colleague of mine in the district has created a Creativity Challenge and posted it to the web. It also looks as though they will be updating weekly.
https://creativitychallenge.weebly.com/
The author and illustrator, Mo Willems, is doing a daily live Doodle class around lunchtime.
https://www.kennedy-center.org/education/mo-willems/
There are many comic book illustrators and artists offering live streams during this time.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/17/arts/comic-books-coronavirus.html
The popular book series, Rebel Girls, has a section of their site with free activities. They also have downloadable and printable coloring pages too.
https://www.rebelgirls.com/collections/rebel-girls-at-home
And a group of indigenous educators started offering free tutorials and lessons on a variety of subjects.
Science Fair
CCES Science Fair 2020
UPDATED INFORMATION: Since the science fair is scheduled for the end of May, we still plan to have our annual science fair. If school is canceled into May/June, then we will plan on having some type of virtual science fair. So, please feel free to continue to work on your science fair project. We will have it one way or another.
Your child is invited to participate in this year’s Science Fair on Thursday, May 28 from 6:30-8:00 p.m. during our Schoolwide Showcase. The Showcase will highlight the remarkable things our extraordinary students have done this year at Clemens Crossing Elementary School. The Science Fair, GT Enrichment Fair, PTA Reflections, and Classroom Displays are all part of the annual showcase.
If your child is interested in doing a Science Fair Collection, Investigation, or Invention at home, please download the corresponding attachment below. Students may do projects individually or as a group. Once your child has identified a project, please complete the online, “Intent to Participate form.” Students who elect to participate will have their name read on the morning announcements and their name printed and hung on a hallway wall display. Directions on where and when to bring in the projects will be shared individually with participants and in future Cougar Comments and by email correspondences. We are excited to highlight the commitment shown and the hard work done by the CCES students this year. Many thanks for all of your support at home and in the building this year.
Science Fair COLLECTION (K-2 only)
Science Fair INVESTIGATION (K-5)
Health Coverage
Save the Date - Open House 2020
Kindergarten Open House
Friday, August 21, 2020 from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
First Grade through Fifth Grade
Friday, August 21, 2020 from 2:30 p.m. to 3:15 p.m.
We are still working on logistics for Back-to-School Nights and will notify the community in the Spring.
Deadline to order - April 15, 2020